Plug and Play kicked off 2010 in style on Sunday night with an ‘electric showcase’. The aim of the evening was to provide new and established young bands with the opportunity to play in front of an appreciative audience of music lovers and musicians alike. Doors opened at 7.00 pm and the room quickly filled with patrons happy to pay just £3.00 for an evening full of great live music. The event proved very popular with four local bands taking to the stage and the organisers were pleased to welcome “Sheldon”, a band from Chester who braved the snow and ice to play a selection of their own songs for a very receptive audience. “No More Heroes” opened up the evening with a selection of self-penned material and rock covers and although only a young band they certainly seemed at home in front of a live audience and had people clapping and singing along to their ‘80’s rock covers. “88 mph” then took to the stage with a set of original material, front man Jonathan Trengrove is becoming something of a regular face at Plug and Play and never fails to impress the crowd with his musical talents and delivery. The band formerly known as “Acid Annihilation” had undergone a few changes and stepped onto the stage as “HD Ready” to perform some great guitar solo rock licks. But for me personally it was new local band “Cobalt” who stole the show with some very tight musicianship and harmonies. With so many performers and instruments having to be sound checked and moved around on stage it was amazing to me that there were no major glitches during the event and the soundmen, Tom Corda-stanley and Chris Archer did a sterling job of managing the changes between performances.

Plug and Play is run entirely by volunteers and the lions-share of takings on the door go back to the performers, without whom there would be no show. The event goes from strength to strength and 2010 looks to be a great year for Plug and Play patrons with some very entertaining performers booked to play over the coming months. February sees the return of “Ember”, an acoustic duo performing largely original material. Emily Williams hails from mid Wales whilst Rebecca Sullivan is from Utah, USA. Both contribute vocals and guitar, with Williams also playing violin, and Sullivan on clarinet and harmonica. The girls have a great stage presence and something of a comic rapport with each other and with the audience. Doors will open at 7.00pm as usual and entry is just £5.00. There will be a 45 minute open session before “Ember” for any musicians who would like to come along and perform their own material. Speaking as the host for the evening I always look forward to the open sessions and welcoming local performers to the stage, there is some amazing talent out there and it is an inspiration and a privilege to introduce it to the Plug and Play audience and to see the artists mature and evolve with each performance. As always refreshments will be available at the bar, which is also staffed by volunteers. Plug and Play can be found at Penrith Playhouse, Auctionmart Lane, Penrith (behind the Agricultural Hotel).